2Pe 1:5-11 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for 2Pet 1:5-7: 1:5-7 The stair-step structure of these verses, with each virtue leading to another, is a common literary device called a sorites . The sequence in such passages is not stressed—e.g., Peter does not imply that moral excellence must come before knowledge . Yet love is the pinnacle of the virtues (1:7 ).

‏ 2 Peter 1:5-11

Summary for 2Pet 1:5-7: 1:5-7 ^a The stair-step structure of these verses, with each virtue leading to another, is a common literary device called a sorites. The sequence in such passages is not stressed—e.g., Peter does not imply that moral excellence must come before knowledge. Yet love is the pinnacle of the virtues (1:7 ^b).
1:10 ^c dear brothers and sisters: This Greek term (adelphoi) refers to people, both male and female, who are members of the same family.

• Work hard to prove (literally Be zealous to make certain): Peter did not mean that our being chosen by God for salvation depends on what we do, but that our zeal to grow in Christian virtue confirms that we have, indeed, been chosen by God.